Rear wheel clicking ONLY when I'm sat in the saddle...

IanTrcp
IanTrcp Posts: 761
edited October 2018 in Workshop
I wonder if anyone can point me in the right direction with this one??? Thanks in advance!

My rear wheel (Mavic R-Sys SL) has developed a distinct click/tick/noise each time it rotates.

Some observations:

1. The click/tick/noise is there whether I'm pedalling or freewheeling
2. Careful inspection reveals nothing rubbing/catching anywhere
3. The click/tick/noise only occurs when I'm on the bike. If I dismount and spin the wheel it's not there. V frustrating!
4. It's getting worse each ride

Any ideas???

Ian

Comments

  • StefanP
    StefanP Posts: 429
    Have you tried tightening up the saddle?
  • 16mm
    16mm Posts: 545
    Not sure it's your wheel. Unless you can see what's clicking how are you certain?
    Is there one click per wheel revolution, speeding up as you get faster?

    Have you removed wheels to check? Could be lots of things like saddle, cables catching cranks, pedals, loose bolts in your shoes etc.
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,263
    It's a bit difficult to give you any advice, as your wheels work with the opposite principle of any other wheel... there is no tension in the spokes, which are instead compressed.
    It could be the bearings in the hub, or it could be one of the spokes. Unfortunately you can't really play with these wheels, best thing is to bring them back to where you bought them for a check or to any Mavic retailer if you have bought them online

    good luck
    left the forum March 2023
  • Twostage
    Twostage Posts: 987
    When you stand on your pedals your weight will be shifted slightly forward so there will be less pressure in the rear wheel. Assuming its not your spoke magnet hitting the sensor I'd narrow it down to loose spoke or bearings that need sorting. Try pinging each spoke to see if one sounds dull. It's possible that two spokes have formed a groove where they cross and one is ticking in and out of the groove.
    What kind of bearings is it ? Cup and cone or sealed ?
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,263
    Twostage wrote:
    When you stand on your pedals your weight will be shifted slightly forward so there will be less pressure in the rear wheel. Assuming its not your spoke magnet hitting the sensor I'd narrow it down to loose spoke or bearings that need sorting. Try pinging each spoke to see if one sounds dull. It's possible that two spokes have formed a groove where they cross and one is ticking in and out of the groove.
    What kind of bearings is it ? Cup and cone or sealed ?

    These have carbon spokes which are compressed... pinging won't tell much... and they don't cross

    These are the ones
    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... tedKingdom
    left the forum March 2023
  • term1te
    term1te Posts: 1,462
    Could it be the valve moving slightly and clicking on the rim? Would give one click per rotation and would only manifest when there was weight on the tyre. I had that problem on some deep section wheels, wrapped some PTFE tape around the valve and it cushened/stopped the clicking.
    The Master
    The Moser
    The VN
  • IanTrcp
    IanTrcp Posts: 761
    Thank you all.

    It's definitely not saddle/seatpost related as it continues when standing.

    I don't think it is spoke related as the usual issues with spokes don't really apply as pointed out by Ugo. My fear is a bearing issue, let's hope not!

    I'm confident that I've checked and excluded all the possibilities that 16mm raises.

    Term1te - your suggestion re valve movement will be the first thing I'll check when I get home this evening. Quite possible as I recently replaced the tube. Thank you for that.

    Further thoughts/ideas welcomed. Thank you in advance.

    Ian
  • smidsy
    smidsy Posts: 5,273
    Something in the tyre tread?
    Yellow is the new Black.
  • g00se
    g00se Posts: 2,221
    Does it do it when you push the bike along? If not, try leaning on the saddle with as much of you weight as you can - and wheel it along. If you can make it tick, have someone help you and try to get a ear down there to find the location.

    If it only happens when your on in, maybe borrow a turbo and have your mate track it down as you pedal.
  • IanTrcp
    IanTrcp Posts: 761
    g00se wrote:
    Does it do it when you push the bike along? If not, try leaning on the saddle with as much of you weight as you can - and wheel it along. If you can make it tick, have someone help you and try to get a ear down there to find the location.

    If it only happens when your on in, maybe borrow a turbo and have your mate track it down as you pedal.


    I can't hear it when spinning the wheel or pushing the bike along. If I lean (and I mean lean hard) on the saddle and then push I can hear it. I was pretty confident that the source was the hub, but Term1te's suggestion re the valve is first on my list to investigate.

    Is it possible that there's some form of wear to bearings that creates a noise only when they are under weight from a rider?
  • IanTrcp
    IanTrcp Posts: 761
    Term1te wrote:
    Could it be the valve moving slightly and clicking on the rim? Would give one click per rotation and would only manifest when there was weight on the tyre. I had that problem on some deep section wheels, wrapped some PTFE tape around the valve and it cushened/stopped the clicking.

    Sadly not this!
  • slowondefy2
    slowondefy2 Posts: 348
    Rear wheel bearing?

    Remove the wheel and spin it whilst holding the bearing in your fingers (i.e. not by the quick release skewer!). Even on a relatively good bearing you should feel a little vibration through the bearing, but if your problem is here then you may feel the click through your fingers. Wheel bearings aren't too difficult to replace/rebuild so it may be worth getting the LBS to sort them out anyway, especially if they've done a significant number of miles.

    Personally I can't see why a noise from the valve would only be there with your weight on the bike. It might be worth removing the tyre and tube regardless - I've heard of foreign bodies between rim and tube as a cause of noise. And it's definitely worth chucking away the valve retaining nut if you haven't already!
  • 16mm
    16mm Posts: 545
    Maybe it's a click from the team car following you:-)

    Can you put the wheel in another bike?
  • term1te
    term1te Posts: 1,462
    slowondefy2 wrote:
    Rear wheel bearing?
    Personally I can't see why a noise from the valve would only be there with your weight on the bike. It might be worth removing the tyre and tube regardless - I've heard of foreign bodies between rim and tube as a cause of noise. And it's definitely worth chucking away the valve retaining nut if you haven't already!

    With weight on the tyre there is a slight flat section where it meets the road. This rotates around the wheel as you roll along. This slight movement is transfered to the valve which being constricted by the hole in the rim moves back and forth. You normally don't see, or hear, this but if you're running the tyres at a lower pressure and especially if you are using tubs, there can be enough movement for the stem to click on the rim. It was a real pain on a set of 50mm deep rims I had, where the longer valve stem amplified the movement. On one ride it was annoying me so much I stopped and was trying to stuff bits of straw between the valve and the rim to stop the noise. A more considered approach with PTFE tape did the job.
    The Master
    The Moser
    The VN
  • smidsy
    smidsy Posts: 5,273
    Or just take the stone out of the tyre 8)
    Yellow is the new Black.
  • bianchiblue
    bianchiblue Posts: 344
    Spoke, freehub, cassette, axle bearings or QR/tension/dropout mating.
  • dgraham504
    dgraham504 Posts: 1
    Hey, mine started doing the same thing. Did you ever figure it out?
  • Freewayflier
    Freewayflier Posts: 3
    Hi All,
    I have the same problem here with my rear ksyrium slr 2014. Was the source of the clicking noise identified ? Would be glad to know how this issue eventually ended up....hopefully to a successful fix !!
    Cheers !!!
  • AK_jnr
    AK_jnr Posts: 717
    Well reading the thread the guy said it only happens when seated but then said it happens when standing too.
    I would of said it had a good chance of being something other than the wheel. Have you checked the other obvious causes of noises?
  • Proz
    Proz Posts: 136
    I'd have put money on the tyre valve rattling as I've had this .... did my head in till i wrapped tape round it as mentioned above ..... Strange one.
    Boardman AiRPro C
    Boardman FS Team 650b
  • Freewayflier
    Freewayflier Posts: 3
    Hi !
    Thanks, will do that soon, although I'm pretty sure it's the rear wheel that clicks, don't know from what part of it exactly.

    The workshop that I attend has good and long experience with mavic ksyrium and other mavic models on high end bikes they sell and service,
    suggests that the wheel might need freehub service because sometimes the freehub pawls are slightly out of place.

    As much as I hope that this is the case like i'm not sure since the wheels are bought new and have been ridden by me for less than 300 km so far in dry weather only.

    They click randomaly only when ridden either pedalling or coasting and do not click while pedalling or spinning without rider weight (~70kg).

    Could the pawls only click only when under rider weight ?
    The same question goes in case it is a faulty bearing that clicks.
    although the bearing preload is adjusted exactly to mavic's specs...
    Could it be a loose spoke ? Although the wheel is 100% true. Could tensioning the spokes fix it ?
    It's a tough one....)-:

    It seems like a common and consistent issue with some mavic models. Mavic's response would be more than welcome, just so we could be more busy riding and enjoying such a superb pro level wheel set rather than trying to understand what makes it click... :-)

    Will greatly appreciate your good advice trying to solve this one !
  • Freewayflier
    Freewayflier Posts: 3
    By the way allready wrapped the tube valve with electrical tape...still clicks...
  • paland
    paland Posts: 4
    I'm sure the above issues have been sorted by their owners by now but I don't see any comments with the resolution. I have Mavic R-sys SLR that developed the same ticking noise from the rear wheel. Having tried everything it turned out to be a noisy spoke adjuster where it screws into the rim. I oiled each spoke and after a short ride the oil worked its way in and the noise has gone. I now need to wait for the noise to come back so I can systematically work out which spoke caused the issue.

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